This site uses cookies to store information on your computer. Some of these cookies are essential to make our site work and others help us to improve by giving us some insight into how the site is being used.

Chapter 8: Air Transport in Scotland

Chapter 8: Air Transport in Scotland

1. Introduction

1.1 This chapter provides information on air transport, such as passenger numbers by origin, destination and type of service, flight punctuality, amount of freight carried, air transport movements, and income and expenditure figures of airline authorities.

Key Points

There were 25.5 million air passengers at Scottish airports in 2015

Three quarters travel to or from Edinburgh or Glasgow.

56 thousand tonnes of freight were carried by air in 2015.

2. Main Points

Passengers & Airports

2.1 There were 25.5 million air terminal passengers in 2015, 1.4 million (5.9%) more than in the previous year. Passenger numbers increased by 39% between 2001 and 2007 reaching a peak of 25,132 before falling 17% to 20,907 in 2010, since when they have risen 22 per cent. (Table 8.1)

2.2 Edinburgh airport had 11.1 million terminal passengers in 2015 (9% increase) and Glasgow airport had 8.7 million, 13% more than the previous year. Aberdeen had 3.5 million, (down 7%) and Inverness had 0.7 million (9% more). Together these four airports accounted for 94% of the total. Over the past ten years, trends for these airports were similar to the national picture, except for Edinburgh which saw a levelling off in numbers after 2007 rather than a fall. (Table 8.1)

2.3 In 2015, London Heathrow accounted for 37% of passengers on selected domestic routes to and from Aberdeen, 27% for Edinburgh and 23% for Glasgow. There were no domestic flights from Glasgow Prestwick in 2015. London Gatwick had 35% of the domestic passengers to/from Inverness. Other domestic routes with large passenger numbers included those between Edinburgh and Gatwick, Stansted, Belfast and London City, and between Glasgow and Gatwick, Stansted, Belfast and Luton. (Table 8.2)

Origin/destinations

2.4 The most popular country of origin/destination for passengers flying directly to and from Scottish airports was Spain (excluding the Canary Islands) with 2.0 million passenger journeys in 2015, 16% of all passengers on direct flights abroad. Other popular origins/destinations were the Netherlands (1.4 million passengers), the Irish Republic (1.1 million passengers) and Germany (around 0.9 million passengers). The trends for many destinations are increasing numbers of passengers, either as a result of more people travelling or more routes becoming available. (Table 8.3a and Table 8.3b)

2.5 Some countries e.g. Tunisia and Austria are mostly served by charter flights (95% and 84%), whereas almost all those who travelled to/from the Irish Republic or the Netherlands used scheduled flights. (Table 8.4)

2.6 The most popular international airports (those with the largest numbers of passenger journeys for flights directly to and from Scotland's main airports in 2015) were Amsterdam with 1.4 million passengers and Dublin with 1.0 million passengers. (Table 8.5)

2.7 In 2015, 6% of all terminal passenger traffic was within Scotland, 44% was to/from other parts of the UK, and 38% was between Scotland and mainland Europe. (Table 8.6)

Delays & Movements

2.8 In 2015, the overall average delay was 12 minutes for flights to or from Edinburgh and 14 minutes from Glasgow airports (the Notes and Definitions section, page 225 describes the basis for these figures). Around 10% of flights to or from Edinburgh and 13% to or from Glasgow airports were delayed by more than 30 minutes. (Table 8.8)

2.9 The total number of aircraft movements in 2015 was 480,000. Aberdeen had the highest number of aircraft movements with 118,000, (94% of which were commercial movements), followed by Edinburgh (112,000) and Glasgow (80,000). (Table 8.9)

Air freight

2.10 Air freight carried in 2015 decreased by 3,437 tonnes (6%) over the previous year to 56,441 tonnes. (Table 8.13)

Other statistics

2.11 The Civil Aviation Authority's 2013 passenger survey found large differences between the 4 main airports. Business passengers ranged from 27% at Glasgow to 57% at Aberdeen. Forty three per cent of passengers at Aberdeen airport were for leisure, compared with 74 per cent at Glasgow. (Table 8.14)

2.12 While around 39-50% of departing passengers at each airport arrived by private car, there were marked differences in the use of other modes of transport: taxi/minicab use ranged from 12% at Inverness to 38% at Aberdeen; bus/coach travellers varied from 9% at Edinburgh to 17% at Inverness and hire car users from 0.7% at Glasgow to 9% at Inverness. (Table 8.15)

Table 8.1 Summary of air transport

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Passengers

thousand

Terminal

23,795

24,437

25,132

24,348

22,496

20,907

22,065

22,207

23,250

24,076

25,507

Transit

91

86

109

85

43

50

46

29

25

27

26

Total

23,886

24,523

25,242

24,433

22,539

20,957

22,111

22,236

23,275

24,103

25,533

Terminal passengers1

by airport

thousand

Aberdeen

2,852

3,163

3,411

3,290

2,984

2,763

3,083

3,329

3,440

3,723

3,469

Barra

9

10

10

11

10

10

10

11

9

11

11

Benbecula

31

33

35

34

33

30

34

31

31

31

32

Campbeltown

9

9

9

9

9

9

9

9

9

9

8

Dundee

49

51

65

61

72

70

62

55

28

22

22

Edinburgh

8,449

8,607

9,037

8,992

9,043

8,594

9,384

9,194

9,775

10,159

11,113

Glasgow

8,775

8,820

8,726

8,135

7,213

6,522

6,858

7,150

7,358

7,709

8,710

Glasgow Prestwick

2,405

2,395

2,421

2,414

1,817

1,660

1,296

1,067

1,145

912

610

Inverness

589

671

697

671

583

528

579

602

607

611

668

Islay

22

26

28

29

26

25

26

21

26

27

29

Kirkwall

104

117

132

138

138

129

134

132

150

151

150

Lerwick (Tingwall)

4

4

5

5

5

5

5

5

4

4

4

Scatsta

239

255

253

243

270

279

288

304

298

280

254

Stornoway

115

120

126

131

122

112

122

116

120

127

125

Sumburgh

121

128

147

154

139

139

143

149

210

263

270

Tiree

7

7

8

8

8

8

8

7

8

9

10

Unst

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

Wick John O'Groats

16

20

21

23

21

22

24

25

33

28

24

Terminal passengers

by airport group2

thousand

Heathrow Airport Holdings 8, 9

20,076

20,590

21,174

20,418

19,240

17,879

19,325

10,479

10,798

11,432

12,179

HIAL airports 7

1,072

1,193

1,279

1,269

1,161

1,082

1,151

1,158

1,231

1,289

1,349

other airports 7,9

2,648

2,655

2,679

2,662

2,092

1,944

1,589

10,570

11,222

11,355

11,981

tonnes

Freight

79,417

83,260

66,103

50,228

50,886

47,532

45,162

52,200

54,225

59,878

56,441

Aircraft movements 3

Air transport

thousand

Domestic 4

255

256

254

247

225

206

206

204

201

202

207

International 4,5

128

138

144

139

129

124

135

138

145

146

142

Air taxi 4

26

26

30

31

28

24

26

29

30

28

30

Other movements 6

135

133

131

126

108

102

100

107

104

107

101

Total

544

554

560

543

490

457

467

478

480

483

480

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland, which are therefore not included in any overall totals. 2. In cases where the ownership of an airport has changed during the period covered by the table, it is counted on the basis of its ownership in the latest year. Tables 8.14 and 8.15 indicate which airports were HIAL airports and BAA airports in the latest year 3. 'Aircraft movements' excludes both Campbeltown and Barra pre-1999 (see table 8.11). 4. For 2000 and earlier years, air taxi movements were counted under domestic and International aircraft movements. From 2001, this breakdown is no longer available. They have therefore been shown separately for 2001 onwards. 5. Including UK offshore flights. 6. Other includes positioning flights, local movements, test & training, other flights by air transport operators, aero club, private, official, military and business 7. Revisions have been made to these figures as Dundee airport had been included in' Other airports' rather than 'HIAL'. 8. Heathrow Airport Holdings took over from BAA in 2006. 9. Heathrow Airport Holdings sold Edinburgh Airport in April 2012. Edinburgh now included in 'other airports'.

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. In this table only, non-paying passengers are excluded up to 2001 but included from then on. In addition, this table excludes some of the smaller domestic routes. Note also that passengers between the four main cities will be counted twice (e.g. flights between Aberdeen and Edinburgh will appear in both the 'Aberdeen' and the 'Edinburgh' sections). 2. Belfast includes Belfast and Belfast City airport.

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. In this table only, non-paying passengers are excluded up to 2001 but included from then on. In addition, this table excludes some of the smaller domestic routes. Note also that passengers between the four main cities will be counted twice (e.g. flights between Aberdeen and Edinburgh will appear in both the 'Aberdeen' and the 'Edinburgh' sections). 2. Belfast includes Belfast and Belfast City airport.

Fig. 8.1 Terminal air passenger traffic, 2005 and 2015

Table 8.3 (a) International air passenger traffic to and from the main Scottish international airports1

Regional Area / Country

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

EU 28 countries (Excl UK)

thousand

Austria

28.4

23.3

21.9

21.7

28.9

24.9

28.2

28.3

28.6

29.9

29.0

Belgium

161.8

140.1

121.0

121.0

113.3

134.0

110.6

115.6

153.7

153.0

172.2

Bulgaria

71.7

65.4

60.1

63.1

48.4

45.2

45.6

46.8

46.1

39.3

39.3

Croatia 3

5.7

11.7

15.6

12.9

24.3

11.6

7.1

12.9

31.6

42.0

56.3

Cyprus

153.6

151.2

139.4

152.8

139.4

95.9

148.7

152.9

119.6

112.4

134.3

Czech Republic

207.0

142.5

70.0

63.4

47.5

44.6

47.9

48.0

89.6

79.0

96.3

Denmark

102.8

135.8

129.6

147.2

178.1

175.8

178.2

188.6

220.3

187.0

254.0

Estonia

-

-

-

-

-

-

29.1

-

-

-

0.2

Finland

6.2

22.0

16.6

5.7

3.5

34.6

37.4

32.1

3.7

4.5

4.8

France

525.6

569.4

690.0

859.4

862.1

790.7

787.5

808.3

806.7

727.2

725.7

Germany

493.1

484.4

566.4

641.7

663.7

660.3

682.0

698.7

761.2

823.5

852.6

Greece

248.6

235.2

209.8

161.6

158.9

153.8

163.7

212.9

193.0

270.3

258.6

Hungary

0.1

0.1

6.9

33.1

30.2

19.6

24.4

36.5

37.9

37.1

60.6

Irish Republic

1,024.5

1,113.7

1,143.3

1,186.3

1,015.9

849.4

852.8

816.6

843.9

950.8

1,102.3

Italy

365.0

331.0

380.3

348.1

401.8

359.2

342.3

384.3

396.9

375.4

398.7

Latvia

-

7.3

49.5

31.5

36.5

47.2

46.5

20.2

31.9

38.5

20.3

Lithuania

-

0.8

4.2

6.0

-

28.3

32.3

29.0

24.8

21.3

29.8

Luxembourg

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

0.2

0.1

0.1

0.0

Malta

45.9

35.7

40.9

37.9

45.6

52.7

71.2

57.5

61.5

67.1

74.8

Netherlands

988.8

1,072.4

1,125.3

1,078.8

987.2

1,006.9

1,135.0

1,223.3

1,244.6

1,323.5

1,353.4

Poland

15.1

227.4

341.3

384.3

374.2

328.0

326.9

341.3

431.4

355.7

489.7

Portugal (excl Madeira)

214.2

252.5

261.0

266.0

207.5

212.4

280.0

273.9

298.3

294.8

306.5

Portugal (Madeira)

22.2

20.0

25.7

36.1

34.4

21.7

23.1

22.8

21.3

29.3

53.4

Romania

-

-

-

-

3.0

-

-

-

-

0.4

1.9

Slovak Republic

-

-

-

6.6

50.3

49.9

44.2

33.6

32.1

23.1

23.6

Slovenia

0.8

0.1

-

0.1

0.1

0.2

0.9

-

-

0.3

-

Spain (excl Canary Isles)

1,799.1

1,948.7

2,101.8

1,908.4

1,679.7

1,483.7

1,726.8

1,746.8

1,929.4

1,874.3

1,987.3

Spain (Canary Islands)

766.9

773.2

771.2

795.6

666.0

658.1

838.3

816.6

849.5

934.1

933.1

Sweden

192.8

143.9

152.5

149.5

159.3

131.9

137.4

128.2

112.6

83.5

105.7

Total EU28 countries (Excl UK)

7,439.8

7,907.7

8,444.5

8,518.8

7,959.8

7,420.7

8,148.2

8,275.7

8,770.4

8,877.3

9,564.2

Total EU15 countries2

6,940.0

7,265.7

7,716.5

7,727.1

7,160.3

6,697.4

7,323.5

7,497.1

7,863.9

8,061.0

8,537.2

Other identified countries

Azerbaijan

-

-

-

-

-

-

4.1

5.8

-

-

0.2

Barbados

-

-

3.5

7.1

8.0

8.4

7.6

6.0

5.2

6.4

7.3

Canada

216.7

189.5

207.7

160.0

107.5

103.3

112.4

117.8

106.1

112.3

148.4

Cape Verde Islands

-

-

-

-

-

-

13.4

22.0

0.2

-

-

Cuba

-

-

-

-

-

0.8

1.3

0.8

0.6

0.6

0.9

Dominican Republic

23.7

13.5

14.0

22.8

25.5

23.1

16.8

0.7

-

6.1

-

Egypt

25.5

64.0

55.8

67.5

97.9

97.8

72.9

66.3

67.0

46.8

44.9

Faroe Islands

5.0

3.8

3.8

0.7

0.5

1.1

0.9

0.6

1.5

1.4

8.6

Greenland

-

-

-

-

-

4.1

8.7

-

0.2

-

-

Iceland

62.3

55.4

46.5

30.8

9.7

25.0

33.2

42.6

72.8

97.0

112.6

Jamaica

-

-

-

-

2.3

0.5

0.9

-

-

0.2

1.3

Mexico

21.6

19.8

27.9

22.1

22.9

28.6

35.3

33.2

30.5

29.2

37.1

Morocco

-

-

-

-

-

19.7

25.2

0.2

0.2

5.4

30.9

Norway

271.4

285.9

307.2

305.2

302.1

281.2

309.4

337.4

339.9

352.8

320.5

Pakistan

2.5

27.9

9.3

18.4

25.5

26.3

1.9

-

-

-

-

Qatar

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

54.0

115.5

Russia

0.7

0.4

0.7

-

0.8

0.7

-

0.7

0.8

-

0.1

Switzerland

52.8

118.4

149.8

155.5

148.2

154.9

215.4

236.5

241.1

266.0

276.9

Tunisia

28.8

35.6

35.7

34.0

38.9

66.3

21.6

32.7

61.4

67.7

35.2

Turkey

176.0

165.9

216.3

260.4

268.6

329.3

328.0

316.0

351.7

404.0

425.7

United Arab Emirates

167.6

192.9

231.1

240.7

244.7

268.5

275.0

314.7

402.3

424.6

502.4

United States of America

438.5

559.9

569.5

483.5

459.7

366.1

411.3

367.7

367.0

446.8

489.1

Total these countries

1,493.0

1,733.0

1,878.9

1,808.7

1,762.8

1,805.5

1,895.3

1,901.6

2,048.4

2,321.3

2,557.5

All identified countries

for these airports

8,932.8

9,640.7

10,323.4

10,327.5

9,722.6

9,226.2

10,043.5

10,177.3

10,818.7

11,198.7

12,121.7

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. For the purpose of preparing this table, Scotland's main international airports are Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Glasgow Prestwick. This table does not cover all international traffic, as indicated by the lower part of table 8.4. 2. The EU15 was the number of member countries in the European Union prior to the accession of ten candidate countries on 1 May 2004. The EU15 comprised the following 15 countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, United Kingdom. 3. Croatia joined the EU in 2013.

Table 8.3(b) Scheduled international passenger traffic to/from the main Scottish international airports1

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Foreign airports served 2

71

83

93

95

103

100

101

107

113

110

120

Routes 3

97

122

142

150

168

145

146

154

167

176

185

thousand

Passengers on scheduled services

6,279.2

7,141.3

7,938.3

8,153.4

8,054.5

7,390.8

8,172.6

8,396.7

9,240.5

9,824.0

10,805.1

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. These figures are produced from the information about scheduled services in the Civil Aviation Authority's UK Airport Statistics Table 12.1, so are based on its conventions and definitions. For the purpose of this table, Scotland's main international airports are Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Glasgow Prestwick. This table does not cover all scheduled international traffic. 2. The number of foreign airports is shown in the CAA table as the destinations of international scheduled services from Scottish airports in that year. For example, the CAA table shows Rome (Ciampino) and Rome (Fiumicino) separately (for services from Glasgow Prestwick and Edinburgh respectively, in 2003) so they are counted as two separate foreign airports. 3. International scheduled services to the same foreign airport from different Scottish airports are counted as separate routes. For example, Aberdeen/Dublin, Edinburgh/Dublin, Glasgow/Dublin and Glasgow Prestwick/Dublin are counted as four separate routes. More than one airline may operate services on a particular route.

Table 8.4 Passenger traffic on selected international routes, to and from Scotland's main airports1, 2015

Scheduled

Charter

Total

Armenia

-

218

218

Austria

4,773

24,187

28,960

Azerbaijan

-

218

218

Barbados

3,637

3,645

7,282

Belgium

171,629

548

172,177

Bulgaria

-

39,292

39,292

Canada

148,164

273

148,437

Croatia

55,362

912

56,274

Cuba

223

637

860

Cyprus

61,365

72,919

134,284

Czech Republic

96,155

114

96,269

Denmark

252,167

1,872

254,039

Egypt

-

44,940

44,940

Estonia

-

196

196

Faroe Islands

8,285

288

8,573

Finland

-

4,799

4,799

France

709,805

15,893

725,698

Georgia

-

254

254

Germany

851,611

1,015

852,626

Greece

139,142

119,476

258,618

Hungary

60,456

143

60,599

Iceland

112,273

311

112,584

Irish Republic

1,100,003

2,293

1,102,296

Italy

353,031

45,620

398,651

Jamaica

-

1,323

1,323

Jordan

-

112

112

Latvia

20,325

-

20,325

Lithuania

29,498

261

29,759

Luxembourg

1

-

1

Macedonia

-

198

198

Malta

68,209

6,586

74,795

Mexico

19,115

17,983

37,098

Morocco

30,913

-

30,913

Netherlands

1,351,540

1,842

1,353,382

Norway

318,193

2,269

320,462

Poland

487,939

1,737

489,676

Portugal (other than Madeira)

288,032

18,457

306,489

Portugal (Madeira)

43,695

9,697

53,392

Qatar

115,529

-

115,529

Romania

1,923

-

1,923

Russia

-

87

87

Slovak Republic

23,561

-

23,561

Spain (other than Canary Islands)

1,587,818

399,502

1,987,320

Spain (Canary Islands)

738,287

194,772

933,059

Sweden

104,023

1,697

105,720

Switzerland

265,201

11,679

276,880

Tunisia

1,775

33,422

35,197

Turkey

208,662

216,993

425,655

United Arab Emirates

502,375

1

502,376

United States of America

470,424

18,701

489,125

Total passenger traffic counted for these countries for Scotland's main airports2

10,805,119

1,317,164

12,122,283

Other international traffic at main Scottish airports2

..

..

218

All international traffic for Scotland's main airports

..

..

12,122,501

International traffic at other Scottish airports

..

..

68,102

Total International traffic at all Scottish airports

..

..

12,190,603

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. For the purpose of preparing this table, Scotland's main international airports are Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Glasgow Prestwick. 2. Charter only routes are counted under 'Other international traffic' in cases where fewer than 5,000 passengers were carried from an airpor to a particular country.

Table 8.5 The 10 international airports with the largest numbers of passenger journeys for flights directly to and from Scotland's main airports 1 , 2015

Scheduled

Charter

Total

Amsterdam

1,351,540

1,198

1,352,738

Dublin

1,028,152

1,786

1,029,938

Paris (Charles De Gaulle)

520,754

1,429

522,183

Tenerife (Surreina Sofia)

372,541

113,797

486,338

Palma De Mallorca

256,870

196,480

453,350

Dubai

429,602

-

429,602

Alicante

386,191

30,190

416,381

Malaga

358,447

27,442

385,889

Frankfurt Main

343,919

318

344,237

Faro

240,690

18,233

258,923

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. For the purpose of preparing this table, Scotland's main international airports are Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Glasgow Prestwick.

Airport

Table 8.6 Terminal passenger traffic by origin/destination, 2015

Other Scottish Airports

Other UK Airports 1

UK offshore

Eire

Europe

North America

Rest of world

Total

Aberdeen

352,968

1,606,396

510,962

40,826

957,679

-

-

3,468,831

Barra

10,683

-

-

-

-

-

-

10,683

Benbecula

32,087

-

-

-

-

-

-

32,087

Campbeltown

8,252

-

-

-

-

-

-

8,252

Dundee

-

21,830

-

232

48

-

-

22,110

Eday

684

-

-

-

-

-

-

684

Edinburgh

121,136

5,068,082

-

581,792

4,855,938

257,285

210,555

11,094,788

Fair Isle

2,417

-

-

-

-

-

-

2,417

Foula

1,063

-

-

-

-

-

-

1,063

Glasgow

188,526

3,904,637

-

479,678

3,184,808

380,277

565,075

8,703,001

Inverness

52,836

545,117

325

24,469

37,647

-

-

660,394

Islay

28,716

-

-

-

-

-

-

28,716

Kirkwall

159,631

-

1

-

196

-

-

159,828

Lerwick (Tingwall)

3,501

-

3

-

-

-

-

3,504

North Ronaldsay

5,624

-

-

-

-

-

-

5,624

Out Skerries

69

-

-

-

-

-

-

69

Papa Stour

64

-

-

-

-

-

-

64

Papa Westray

4,802

-

-

-

-

-

-

4,802

Glasgow Prestwick

304

20

-

-

608,588

-

-

608,912

Sanday

3,126

-

-

-

-

-

-

3,126

Scatsta

142,655

-

114,434

-

-

-

-

257,089

Stornoway

122,108

513

-

-

-

-

-

122,621

Stronsay

3,282

-

-

-

-

-

-

3,282

Sumburgh

229,352

-

25,887

4,358

978

-

-

260,575

Tiree

8,675

-

-

-

-

-

-

8,675

Westray

3,630

-

-

-

-

-

-

3,630

Wick John O'Groats

23,841

12

895

-

174

-

-

24,922

Total

1,510,032

11,146,607

652,507

1,131,355

9,646,056

637,562

775,630

25,499,749

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Channel Islands and the Isle of Man were not included in previous editions of this table. Although they are now, they represent less than one percent of travel to other UK airports.

Table 8.7 Terminal air passengers by airport, international/domestic and type of service, 2015

International/UK Offshore

Domestic1

Total

Scheduled

Charter

Total

Scheduled

Charter

Total

Aberdeen

888,852

620,567

1,509,419

1,753,364

206,545

1,959,909

3,469,328

Barra

-

-

-

10,658

-

10,658

10,658

Benbecula

-

-

-

32,125

-

32,125

32,125

Campbeltown

-

36

36

8,252

-

8,252

8,288

Dundee

-

337

337

20,110

1,495

21,605

21,942

Edinburgh

5,667,859

247,702

5,915,561

5,195,553

2,272

5,197,825

11,113,386

Glasgow

3,650,371

959,651

4,610,022

4,097,224

2,285

4,099,509

8,709,531

Glasgow Prestwick

608,421

959

609,380

182

27

209

609,589

Inverness

59,268

3,135

62,403

604,682

475

605,157

667,560

Islay

-

-

-

28,993

-

28,993

28,993

Kirkwall

-

197

197

149,298

29

149,327

149,524

Lerwick (Tingwall)

-

3

3

4,166

6

4,172

4,175

Scatsta

-

114,434

114,434

-

139,092

139,092

253,526

Stornoway

-

2

2

124,485

497

124,982

124,984

Sumburgh

978

30,245

31,223

170,202

68,701

238,903

270,126

Tiree

-

-

-

9,564

-

9,564

9,564

Wick John O'Groats

-

1,069

1,069

21,759

1,324

23,083

24,152

Total

10,875,749

1,978,337

12,854,086

12,230,617

422,748

12,653,365

25,507,451

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Domestic traffic is counted both at the airport of arrival and at the airport of departure. The total of domestic traffic is, therefore, only a measure of airport activity. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland and are therefore not included in any overall totals.

Table 8.8 Punctuality of flights at Edinburgh and Glasgow airports

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Edinburgh

Flights to/from UK origins / destinations

numbers

Matched

82,233

79,818

75,021

72,499

64,086

58,282

58,404

56,926

55,314

54,580

58,822

Unmatched - actual 1

318

278

308

366

193

268

106

82

83

71

71

Unmatched - planned 2

1,326

932

816

517

365

1,083

274

257

224

212

285

Percentage of flights late 3

percentages

early to 15 mins late

74

74

73

79

84

79

84

84

85

82

80

16 to 30 mins late

13

13

13

10

8

9

8

8

7

9

10

31 to 60 mins late

8

8

8

7

5

6

5

5

5

5

6

1 hr 1 min to 3 hrs late

4

5

5

4

3

5

3

3

3

4

4

3hrs 1 min to 6 hrs late

0

0

0

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

more than 6 hrs late

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

minutes

Average delay 4

14

15

15

12

10

13

9

9

9

10

12

All flights (UK and international)

numbers

Matched

108,802

109,307

109,402

107,172

100,408

94,863

99,823

97,645

98,670

96,292

102,038

Unmatched - actual 1

526

508

613

518

387

492

276

188

150

113

134

Unmatched - planned 2

1,536

1,107

1,074

769

575

2,061

552

312

275

260

394

Percentage of flights late 3

percentages

early to 15 mins late

74

74

73

77

82

77

83

84

84

82

78

16 to 30 mins late

13

13

13

11

9

10

9

8

8

9

11

31 to 60 mins late

8

8

8

7

5

7

5

5

4

5

6

1 hr 1 min to 3 hrs late

4

5

5

4

3

5

3

3

3

3

4

3hr 1 min to 6 hrs late

0

0

1

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

0

more than 6 hrs late

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

minutes

Average delay 4

14

15

16

13

11

15

10

9

9

9

12

Glasgow

Flights to/from UK origins / destinations

numbers

Matched

66,243

66,121

65,538

60,243

51,934

47,933

46,214

47,010

46,137

47,175

50,524

Unmatched - actual 1

308

466

906

636

198

233

118

88

70

77

132

Unmatched - planned 2

390

778

726

375

274

763

305

240

205

229

247

Percentage of flights late

percentages

early to 15 mins late

79

76

77

79

85

80

85

85

84

83

77

16 to 30 mins late

10

11

11

10

7

8

7

7

7

8

10

31 to 60 mins late

6

7

7

7

4

6

4

4

5

5

7

1 hr 1 min to 3 hrs late

4

4

5

4

3

5

3

3

3

3

5

3hrs 1 min to 6 hrs late

0

0

0

0

0

1

0

0

0

0

1

more than 6 hrs late

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

minutes

Average delay 4

12

13

13

12

10

12

9

9

10

10

14

All flights (UK and international)

numbers

Matched

95,198

95,383

91,886

85,274

73,262

68,291

69,507

71,637

71,901

73,396

79,618

Unmatched - actual 1

522

730

1,146

814

294

482

176

160

136

152

238

Unmatched - planned 2

568

966

908

526

330

1,175

393

297

252

262

314

75

75

75

75

Percentage of flights late

percentages

early to 15 mins late

78

75

74

75

82

77

83

83

83

82

76

16 to 30 mins late

11

12

11

11

8

9

8

8

8

9

11

31 to 60 mins late

7

8

8

8

5

7

5

5

5

5

7

1 hr 1 min to 3 hrs late

4

5

5

5

4

6

4

4

3

3

5

3hrs 1 min to 6 hrs late

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

1

0

1

more than 6 hrs late

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

0

minutes

Average delay 4

14

15

17

16

12

16

11

11

11

11

14

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Air transport movements which took place but for which there was no corresponding planned flight (e.g. diversions from another airport to this airport) 2. Planned flights for which there was no air transport movement (e.g. flights that were cancelled or diverted to another airport) 3. The punctuality figures for Edinburgh for 2001 onwards are not comparable to the figures for 2000 and earlier years. From January 2001, a different assumption has been used for the taxi-ing time for departures from Edinburgh airport. 4. The average delays for 2000 onwards are not comparable to the figures for 1999 and earlier years. Up to December 1999, an early flight was counted as a "negative delay"; from January 2000, an early flights is counted as "zero delay"

Table 8.9 Aircraft movements, by airport and type of movement, 2015 1

Airport

Commercial Movements

Non-commercial Movements

Total

Air Transport

Position- ing Flights

Local Move-ments

Total

Test and Training

Other Flights by air transport operators

Aero Club

Private

Official

Millitary

Business

Total

Aberdeen

106,755

4,314

2

111,071

4,293

89

2,346

82

2

73

263

7,148

118,219

Barra

881

2

-

883

-

1

-

78

-

4

-

83

966

Benbecula

3,286

280

4

3,570

6

1

-

101

-

28

2

138

3,708

Campbeltown

1,123

96

1

1,220

6

-

-

197

-

173

-

376

1,596

Dundee

1,543

250

227

2,020

540

110

36,597

719

5

31

405

38,407

40,427

Edinburgh

106,748

1,610

4

108,362

58

29

447

287

5

162

2,386

3,374

111,736

Glasgow

75,585

1,757

6

77,348

146

54

1,224

118

10

199

421

2,172

79,520

Glasgow Prestwick

8,623

302

-

8,925

2,610

1

6,886

2,045

-

3,838

-

15,380

24,305

Inverness

14,425

1,396

20

15,841

1,925

158

8,530

1,664

-

62

767

13,106

28,947

Islay

1,739

150

-

1,889

2

-

-

583

-

158

5

748

2,637

Kirkwall

12,951

726

14

13,691

292

27

63

312

-

8

10

712

14,403

Lerwick (Tingwall)

1,748

288

1

2,037

8

9

4

17

-

-

9

47

2,084

Scatsta

13,338

1,007

-

14,345

310

13

-

-

-

-

-

323

14,668

Stornoway

8,644

357

294

9,295

883

1

-

454

-

412

4

1,754

11,049

Sumburgh

13,606

1,073

328

15,007

1,683

4

-

49

-

28

-

1,764

16,771

Tiree

1,111

12

-

1,123

-

-

1

121

-

2

-

124

1,247

Wick John O'Groats

4,276

1,227

5

5,508

1,126

1

-

1,111

-

36

5

2,279

7,787

Total

376,382

14,847

906

392,135

13,888

498

56,098

7,938

22

5,214

4,277

87,935

480,070

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland and are therefore not included in any overall totals.

Table 8.10 Air transport movements by airport, type of service and operator, 2015 2

Airport

Scheduled

Charter

Air taxi 1 movements

Total

UK Operators

Over seas Operators

Total

UK Operators

Over seas Operators

Total

Aberdeen

39,721

13,604

53,325

46,057

511

46,568

6,862

106,755

Barra

880

-

880

-

-

-

1

881

Benbecula

1,887

-

1,887

-

-

-

1,399

3,286

Campbeltown

1,018

-

1,018

-

4

4

101

1,123

Dundee

14

1,296

1,310

41

6

47

186

1,543

Edinburgh

68,192

29,070

97,262

4,642

1,924

6,566

2,920

106,748

Glasgow

55,269

10,620

65,889

5,561

1,056

6,617

3,079

75,585

Glasgow Prestwick

4

8,520

8,524

2

80

82

17

8,623

Inverness

9,891

26

9,917

67

27

94

4,414

14,425

Islay

1,558

-

1,558

-

-

0

181

1,739

Kirkwall

10,639

-

10,639

144

3

147

2,165

12,951

Lerwick (Tingwall)

1,329

-

1,329

-

-

-

419

1,748

Scatsta

-

-

-

13,174

-

13,174

164

13,338

Stornoway

6,316

-

6,316

22

2

24

2,304

8,644

Sumburgh

6,604

-

6,604

2,508

85

2,593

4,409

13,606

Tiree

985

-

985

-

-

-

126

1,111

Wick John O'Groats

1,930

-

1,930

184

1,223

1,407

939

4,276

Total

206,237

63,136

269,373

72,402

4,921

77,323

29,686

376,382

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. A breakdown of air taxi movements between scheduled and chartered aircraft transport movements is no longer available. They have therefore been shown as a separate category. 2. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland, which are therefore not included in any overall totals.

Table 8.11 Air transport movements 1

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Aberdeen

85,302

94,382

102,989

108,453

106,366

99,419

92,287

99,452

104,227

106,755

112,537

106,755

Barra

1,227

1,232

1,265

1,209

1,262

1,199

1,178

1,183

1,319

881

888

881

Benbecula

3,702

3,911

4,052

4,320

4,145

4,292

3,965

3,912

3,958

3,286

3,013

3,286

Campbeltown

1,357

1,293

1,268

1,307

1,216

1,359

1,251

1,133

1,105

1,123

1,150

1,123

Dundee

2,513

2,536

2,523

3,513

3,910

4,159

3,838

3,033

2,872

1,543

1,407

1,543

Edinburgh

115,205

119,061

118,690

120,096

118,899

111,059

104,288

108,708

106,958

106,748

103,388

106,748

Glasgow

96,278

99,700

99,157

97,277

90,977

77,874

71,598

72,377

74,615

75,585

77,447

75,585

Glasgow Prestwick

19,189

20,554

19,464

20,454

20,427

15,496

13,135

10,017

8,166

8,623

6,659

8,623

Inverness

18,427

20,139

20,601

19,352

17,936

15,791

13,254

15,097

14,814

14,425

13,886

14,425

Islay

1,528

1,579

1,738

1,731

1,869

1,677

1,809

2,004

1,817

1,739

1,730

1,739

Kirkwall

11,714

11,954

13,226

14,008

14,121

13,849

12,945

12,599

12,400

12,951

12,935

12,951

Lerwick (Tingwall)

2,127

2,328

2,029

1,913

1,863

2,011

1,652

1,817

1,783

1,748

1,583

1,748

Scatsta

10,012

10,430

11,445

11,333

10,743

12,704

12,731

13,199

13,915

13,338

12,503

13,338

Stornoway

7,259

8,135

9,646

9,741

10,028

9,484

8,842

9,190

9,367

8,644

8,358

8,644

Sumburgh

6,157

7,562

8,453

9,861

9,812

8,435

8,237

9,156

10,963

13,606

14,677

13,606

Tiree

724

724

753

755

937

1,109

1,023

1,019

1,121

1,111

1,138

1,111

Unst

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Wick John O'Groats

2,905

3,280

3,253

2,860

2,571

2,776

2,394

2,416

2,660

4,276

2,885

4,276

Total

385,626

408,800

420,552

428,183

417,082

382,693

354,427

366,312

372,060

376,382

376,184

376,382

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland and are therefore not included in any overall totals.

Table 8.12 Total aircraft movements, by airport 1

2004

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

Aberdeen

98,598

109,232

116,971

121,927

119,831

109,876

102,396

108,862

115,013

118,219

124,282

118,219

Barra

1,358

1,323

1,321

1,296

1,310

1,356

1,252

1,258

1,403

966

988

966

Benbecula

4,209

4,466

4,462

4,810

4,660

4,779

4,402

4,366

4,478

3,708

3,504

3,708

Campbeltown

1,913

2,500

3,837

3,674

1,921

2,418

2,334

1,993

1,527

1,596

1,628

1,596

Dundee

32,099

37,261

37,444

37,292

36,297

39,274

37,169

36,815

40,926

40,427

35,730

40,427

Edinburgh

125,317

127,122

126,914

128,172

125,550

115,969

108,997

113,357

110,288

111,736

109,545

111,736

Glasgow

107,885

110,581

110,034

108,305

100,087

85,281

77,755

78,111

80,472

79,520

84,000

79,520

Glasgow Prestwick

55,998

54,996

48,189

47,910

42,708

34,230

33,087

28,546

25,670

24,305

25,643

24,305

Inverness

33,477

37,879

40,826

39,139

40,538

30,290

28,155

30,755

31,764

28,947

28,495

28,947

Islay

2,306

2,334

2,558

2,650

2,625

2,603

2,775

3,003

2,969

2,637

2,610

2,637

Kirkwall

13,466

13,375

14,719

15,574

15,982

15,590

14,535

14,131

13,980

14,403

14,420

14,403

Lerwick (Tingwall)

2,214

2,416

2,131

2,050

2,085

2,157

1,859

1,926

1,924

2,084

2,169

2,084

Scatsta

10,958

11,257

12,335

12,961

12,951

14,364

13,841

14,475

15,587

14,668

13,778

14,668

Stornoway

9,508

10,665

12,363

12,716

13,072

11,627

10,952

11,255

11,564

11,049

10,909

11,049

Sumburgh

8,655

10,409

12,185

13,984

14,758

12,159

11,118

12,228

14,045

16,771

18,171

16,771

Tiree

868

858

858

868

1,071

1,316

1,210

1,111

1,224

1,247

1,295

1,247

Unst

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Wick John O'Groats

5,624

6,931

6,721

6,327

7,221

6,231

4,754

4,734

5,474

7,787

5,711

7,787

Total

514,453

543,605

553,868

559,655

542,667

489,520

456,591

466,926

478,308

480,070

482,878

480,070

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland, which are therefore not included in any overall totals.

Table 8.13 Freight carried by airport1

2005

2006

2007

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

tonnes

Aberdeen

4,089

4,022

3,434

4,006

3,822

4,211

5,311

6,166

7,102

6,278

6,545

Barra 3

86

56

37

34

34

29

29

27

26

21

19

Benbecula 3

1,416

910

590

587

564

531

466

475

457

310

313

Campbeltown 3

2

1

2

1

1

1

1

-

1

-

-

Dundee

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Edinburgh 2

29,595

36,389

19,292

12,418

23,791

20,357

19,332

19,115

18,624

19,369

19,322

Glasgow 2

8,733

6,289

4,276

3,546

2,334

2,914

2,430

9,497

11,837

15,411

13,193

Glasgow Prestwick

29,199

28,537

31,517

22,966

13,385

12,163

11,846

10,314

9,526

12,540

11,242

Inverness 3

1,722

2,170

2,347

2,104

2,443

2,800

1,833

2,601

2,524

2,507

2,507

Islay 3

252

246

312

335

340

310

287

284

273

276

288

Kirkwall 3

904

904

709

730

646

777

132

97

103

107

94

Lerwick (Tingwall)

1

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Scatsta

725

730

765

723

752

765

808

873

849

788

702

Stornoway 3

1,562

1,881

1,717

1,610

1,641

1,630

1,659

1,704

1,752

1,200

1,173

Sumburgh 3

1,068

1,061

1,036

1,109

1,075

990

979

990

1,095

1,018

998

Tiree 3

57

59

60

56

56

52

49

57

55

52

44

Unst

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

-

Wick John O'Groats 3

5

6

8

3

2

2

1

-

1

1

1

Total

79,417

83,260

66,103

50,228

50,886

47,532

45,162

52,200

54,225

59,878

56,441

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. Statistics are not collected for some of the smaller airports on Orkney and Shetland, which are therefore not included in any overall totals. 2. The change in the figures for Glasgow and Edinburgh in 1998 was due to a company switching its parcel hub from Glasgow to Edinburgh in 1998. 3. Data for these airports previously came from CAA which does not hold detailed information (passengers/freight carried) etc for charter services operated by aircraft below 15 tonnes Maximum Take Off Mass . However, more detailed information including smaller aircraft has now been obtained from Highland & Islands airports Ltd and the figures have been revised back to 2000.

Table 8.14 Characteristics of terminal passengers, 2013 1

Airport

International passengers

Domestic passengers

All services

All

Business

Leisure

Business

Leisure

Busin-ess

Leisure

UK resid.

Foreign resid.

UK resid.

Non UK resid.

UK resid.

Non UK resid.

UK resid.

Non UK resid.

UK resid.

Non UK resid.

row percentages

Aberdeen

12.4

7.5

10.7

5.5

33.8

3.0

24.3

2.9

56.7

43.4

81.2

18.9

100

Edinburgh

4.4

3.6

26.6

17.8

21.2

1.3

20.7

4.4

30.5

69.5

72.9

27.1

100

Glasgow

2.5

2.1

38.9

7.1

20.7

1.2

24.5

3.1

26.5

73.6

86.6

13.5

100

Inverness

1.0

0.5

1.6

3.0

29.7

1.3

56.4

6.6

32.5

67.6

88.7

11.4

100

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. The CAA survey collected statistics only for the airports shown in the table.

Table 8.15 Mode of surface transport used to arrive at the airport 1

Airport 2

Bus and rail

Car and taxi

Other modes

Total all modes*

Bus / coach

Rail

Total bus + rail

Private car

Hire car

Taxi / minicab

Total car + taxi

row percentages

Aberdeen

1975

13

0

13

50

7

28

85

3

101

1982

9

0

9

50

8

30

88

3

100

1990

6

0

6

49

8

36

93

1

100

1996

5

0

5

55

7

32

94

1

100

2001

4.7

0.0

4.7

49.2

5.2

38.8

93.2

2.1

100

2005

6.2

0.0

6.2

49.5

6.1

36.9

92.5

1.3

100

2009 3

5.7

3.3

9.0

48.1

3.9

36.6

88.6

2.4

100

2013 3

9.0

3.5

12.5

43.6

4.0

38.4

85.9

1.6

100

Edinburgh

1970

24

0

24

54

6

13

73

3

100

1975

22

0

22

55

8

14

77

1

100

1982

9

0

9

61

10

19

90

2

101

1990

7

0

7

56

10

25

91

1

99

1996

9

0

9

53

10

28

91

0

100

2001

18.4

0.0

18.4

46.8

6.3

28.1

81.2

0.4

100

2005

19.3

0.0

19.3

48.6

5.8

25.7

80.1

0.6

100

2009 3

26.9

2.6

29.5

43.2

5.3

21.3

69.9

0.6

100

2013 3

9.2

3.8

13.0

38.5

1.0

21.8

61.3

25.7

100

Glasgow

1970

24

0

24

54

4

16

74

2

100

1975

16

0

16

60

4

19

83

1

100

1982

8

0

8

70

4

17

91

1

100

1990

8

0

8

62

7

22

91

2

101

1996

7

0

7

61

7

23

91

1

99

2001

8.3

0.0

8.3

60.1

4.9

26.0

91.0

0.7

100

2005

10.7

0.0

10.7

57.6

4.4

26.4

88.4

0.9

100

2009 3

11.6

3.1

14.7

51.6

4.0

27.0

82.5

2.8

100

2013 3

14.1

4.2

18.3

50.4

0.7

25.7

76.7

5.0

100

Glas. Prestwick

2005

3.6

20.8

24.4

57.2

12.5

5.2

74.9

0.7

100

2009 3

11.0

26.7

37.7

44.8

5.5

9.8

60.2

2.1

100

Inverness

1990

7

0

7

62

15

15

92

1

100

1996

6

0

6

57

17

17

91

3

100

2001

4.0

0.0

4.0

56.3

17.1

20.8

94.2

1.8

100

2005

4.9

0.0

4.9

60.5

17.9

14.4

92.8

2.3

100

2009 3

9.1

2.2

11.4

55.6

18.3

12.5

86.4

2.3

100

2013 3

17.1

3.3

20.4

49.6

8.5

11.8

69.9

9.7

100

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. The CAA surveys collected statistics only for the airports shown in the table. These results are based on a departure survey only. The CAA's assumption, for weighting purposes, is that arriving and departing passengers share the same modal characteristics 2. Airports are shown only for the years for which figures are given in the CAA survey reports for 1996 (which also gives earlier years' results), 2001, 2005 and 2009. 3. A small adjustment has been made to the percentages due to an error in the calculations used to produce the figures. *. The figures for 1996 and earlier years may appear not to total 100% because they were rounded independently and then given only as whole percentages. The mode of transport includes cases where more than one form of transport is used.

Table 8.16 Origins/destinations of terminating passengers: 2013 1

Aberdeen

Edinburgh

Glasgow

Inverness

Total

thousands

Borders

-

188

21

-

209

Central

2

541

278

-

821

Dumfries & Galloway

-

38

81

-

119

Fife

9

994

139

-

1,142

Grampian

2,354

223

159

110

2,846

Highlands & Islands

67

160

166

470

863

Lothian

7

5,753

303

1

6,064

Strathclyde

20

828

5,667

-

6,515

Tayside

67

781

267

2

1,117

Total all Scottish areas

2,526

9,506

7,081

583

19,696

England & Wales

17

117

59

-

193

All passengers 2

2,543

9,623

7,140

583

19,889

Source: Civil Aviation Authority - Not National Statistics 1. The CAA survey collected statistics only for the airports shown in the table. 2. Terminating passengers are those who arrive at or depart from an airport by surface means of transport. As explained in the Notes and Definitions, their numbers are not the same as the numbers of terminal passengers: the latter also include transfer passengers (people who change aircraft at an airport).